A supermodel-backed music festival where tickets cost up to $12,000 turned into a nightmare — here's what happened

This is how Fyre Festival was advertised beforehand.Facebook/Fyre Festival

Instead of dancing on the white sand beaches of Great Exuma in the Bahamas, Fyre Festival attendees have found themselves stranded in airports, some without any food or water, unable to get home.

This three-day party, organized by Ja Rule and tech entrepreneur Billy McFarland's company, Fyre Media, was supposed to take place on a private beach in the Bahamas for two weekends, April 28-30 and May 5-7.

But guests, who had spent between $450 and $12,000 on tickets, are describing the festival as a "complete disaster," with half-built tents, delayed flights, and no one around to help.

The three-day party was supposed to be on a private beach on the island of Great Exuma in the Bahamas.

A host of supermodels had promoted it on social media, including Hailey Baldwin, Emily Ratajkowski, and Bella Hadid.

Major artists were planning to headline the party.

Guests spent as much as $12,000 on tickets, which included accommodations and flights to the island.

But when they arrived, it was a very different scene.

Blink-182, who were supposed to headline the festival, had dropped out.

The accommodations were not as luxurious as expected.

Many of the tents hadn't been put up.

There were also problems with luggage delivery.

And no one was around to help.

The concierge hadn't yet been built.

The festival claimed to offer gourmet food.

But guests said they were given bread, cheese, and salads without dressing.

A notebook that a guest said belonged to an organizer had haphazard notes for what looks like a food order.

According to The Wall Street Journal, issues with the festival had been brewing since the start of April, as organizers missed a series of deadlines to make advance payments to performers. The sheer size and complexity of putting this festival together had proved problematic, and many of the organizers were not experienced enough to deal with it, they said.